Precedence and Sequence of Business / Divisions

Suspension of sitting

Debates p. 2251

Background

On March 19, 1984, the House proceeded to vote on a motion by Mr. Deniger (La Prairie) that the question be now put. The House had been debating Bill C-9, an Act to establish the Canadian Security Intelligence Service at second reading. A recorded division was demanded and the bells were rung. At 6:15 p.m., the Speaker stated that the sitting was suspended until 9:00 a.m. the next morning. At 11:10 a.m. the next day, the House divided on the motion. On March 20,1984, the Official Opposition House Leader Mr. Nielsen (Yukon) rose on a point of order to take issue with decision to suspend the previous evening's sitting. The Speaker heard representations from all three parties, and then gave the House his own account of the events of the previous evening and the reasons for his decision to suspend the sitting. He stated that he would have further comments to make at an appropriate time after reflecting on the record.

Issue

Under what circumstances does the Speaker have the authority to suspend a sitting while the division bells are ringing?

Decision

The Speaker may suspend the sitting while the division bells are ringing if he has received indications that the vote will not take place before the following morning.

Reasons given by the Speaker

In situations such as this, there are informal and imperfect channels of communication available to the Speaker, the House leaders and others involved. The Chair's decision to suspend the sitting was based on information, however imperfect, received from the Opposition House Leader, that there was no prospect of a vote taking place before the following morning. Given these indications, the decision to suspend the sitting was perfectly consistent with the decision of Speaker Sauvé on May 9, 1983. [The Speaker commented further on this incident in his ruling of March 30, 1984.]

Sources cited

Debates, May 9, 1983, p. 25288.